Patents by Inventor Hiroyuki Tsunekawa

Hiroyuki Tsunekawa has filed for patents to protect the following inventions. This listing includes patent applications that are pending as well as patents that have already been granted by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO).

  • Patent number: 11933183
    Abstract: A steam turbine valve abnormality monitoring system according to an embodiment includes a detection unit detecting the state of a steam turbine valve or a steam turbine valve drive device, a determination unit, and an abnormality processing unit. Based on the detected result of the detection unit, the determination unit determines whether or not an abnormality has occurred in the opening degree control of the steam turbine valve. The abnormality processing unit issues an alarm or issues a turbine stop command when the determination unit determines that an abnormality has occurred in the opening degree control of the steam turbine valve.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: June 14, 2021
    Date of Patent: March 19, 2024
    Assignees: KABUSHIKI KAISHA TOSHIBA, TOSHIBA ENERGY SYSTEMS & SOLUTIONS CORPORATION
    Inventors: Takuhiro Tsunekawa, Yuichi Nakamura, Hisashi Goto, Hiroyuki Miya
  • Patent number: 11799102
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell; a temperature acquisition unit that acquires a temperature at a specific position in a vehicle equipped with the fuel cell system; a purge unit that purges the fuel cell when an operation of the fuel cell is stopped; and a control unit that acquires the temperature at the specific position from the temperature acquisition unit at least once from when the fuel cell system is stopped until the fuel cell system is started again, and uses the temperature at the specific position to determine whether purging at a stop by the purge unit is necessary when the fuel cell system is stopped next.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 23, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 24, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Masashi Toida, Yusuke Nishida, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa, Masahiro Ito
  • Patent number: 11721818
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell in which cells are stacked, a voltage sensor that detects a voltage in unit of one or more of the cells, a control unit that determines an operating point of the fuel cell and causes the fuel cell to operate. The control unit causes the fuel cell to operate at a low efficiency operating point having a lower efficiency than an efficiency of a reference operating point in a warm-up operation. In the warm-up operation, the control unit calculates a total number of the cells in which the voltage detected by the voltage sensor is equal to or less than a predetermined first reference voltage and calculates an exhaust hydrogen concentration based on the total number or the cells.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 3, 2020
    Date of Patent: August 8, 2023
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Ryouichi Namba, Toshiyuki Sanada, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa, Yoshihiro Ikogi, Masahiro Ito
  • Patent number: 11695136
    Abstract: The control device is configured so that when a temperature of the fuel cell at the time of start of power generation of the fuel cell is less than a standard temperature, it makes the fuel cell generate power so that the amount of heat generation of the fuel cell accompanying the power generation loss becomes a first amount of heat generation and so that when a cumulative value of current of a time period during which the fuel cell is made to generate power so that the amount of heat generation becomes the first amount of heat generation is equal to or greater than a predetermined cumulative value, it makes the fuel cell generate power so that the amount of heat generation becomes a second amount of heat generation larger than the first amount of heat generation.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 19, 2021
    Date of Patent: July 4, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Ryouichi Namba, Masahiro Ito, Koro Fujio, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
  • Patent number: 11670786
    Abstract: The low efficiency power generation part of a control device is provided with an operating point setting part setting a target current and a target voltage defining an operating point of the fuel cell at the time of low efficiency power generation and a generated electric power control part making the generated electric power of the fuel cell increase and decrease at the time of low efficiency power generation by controlling the current of the fuel cell to the target current while making the flow rate of feed of oxidizing agent gas supplied to the fuel cell fluctuate so that the voltage of the fuel cell increases and decreases above and below the target voltage within a range where the charged and discharged electric powers of the rechargeable battery do not become larger than the allowable charged and discharged electric powers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: June 6, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Ryouichi Namba, Asuka Takasaki, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
  • Patent number: 11652225
    Abstract: During performance of low efficiency power generation, a control device controls the flow rate of feed of the oxidizing agent gas so that the amount of heat generation of the fuel cell accompanying power generation loss becomes a first amount of heat generation when the state of a mount on which the fuel cell system is mounted is a first mode and controls the flow rate of feed of the oxidizing agent gas so that the amount of heat generation becomes a second amount of heat generation smaller than the first amount of heat generation when the state of the mount is a second mode where the generated electric power of the fuel cell fluctuates more easily compared with the first mode.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 20, 2021
    Date of Patent: May 16, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Ryouichi Namba, Junichi Matsuo, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
  • Patent number: 11637304
    Abstract: The low efficiency power generation part of a control device is provided with an operating point setting part setting a target current and a target voltage defining an operating point of the fuel cell at the time of low efficiency power generation and a generated electric power control part making the generated electric power of the fuel cell increase and decrease at the time of low efficiency power generation by controlling the current of the fuel cell to the target current while making the flow rate of feed of oxidizing agent gas supplied to the fuel cell fluctuate so that the voltage of the fuel cell increases and decreases above and below the target voltage within a range where the charged and discharged electric powers of the rechargeable battery do not become larger than the allowable charged and discharged electric powers.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 21, 2021
    Date of Patent: April 25, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Ryouichi Namba, Asuka Takasaki, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
  • Patent number: 11621431
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell, a hydrogen tank, a hydrogen supply passage connecting the hydrogen tank and the fuel cell, a cutoff valve configured to cut off circulation of hydrogen in the hydrogen supply passage, a detection unit configured to detect a start of filling of the hydrogen tank with hydrogen, and a purge controller configured to close the cutoff valve in a case where the fuel cell system is stopped and the detection unit detects the start of filling with hydrogen in a state in which purge processing of purging the in-cell hydrogen flow passage is to be executed, and to execute processing of purging the in-cell hydrogen flow passage by causing hydrogen remaining on a downstream side of the cutoff valve in a hydrogen flow in the hydrogen supply passage to flow in the in-cell hydrogen flow passage as the purge processing.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 21, 2020
    Date of Patent: April 4, 2023
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Masahiro Ito, Masashi Toida, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa, Tsuyoshi Maruo
  • Patent number: 11476477
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell; a target operating point determination unit that determines a warm-up target operating point based on a required electric power amount during warm-up and a required heat generation amount during warm-up; an operation control unit; and a failure state identification unit that identifies whether an electric power consumption device that operates by consuming generated electric power generated by the fuel cell has failed. When a failure of the electric power consumption device is identified, the target operating point determination unit determines an operating point that satisfies a required electric power amount during a failure that is set to be smaller than the required electric power amount during the warm-up and a required heat generation amount during the failure that is set to be smaller than the required heat generation amount during the warm-up as a target operating point during the failure.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 25, 2021
    Date of Patent: October 18, 2022
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Ryouichi Namba, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
  • Patent number: 11437636
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell a current sensor that detects a current of the fuel cell, a plurality of cell voltage sensors that detects a voltage in a unit of one or two or more cells of the fuel cell among the cells, a pump that adjusts a flow rate of the cooling medium, and a controller. The controller estimates, in a first case, a calorific value of the fuel cell using each detected cell voltage value and the detected current value, decides the flow rate of the cooling medium based on the estimated calorific value, and controls the operation of the pump such that the flow rate of the cooling medium is lower than that of a case where the estimated calorific value is the same in a normal operation of the fuel cell.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 2, 2021
    Date of Patent: September 6, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Shuhei Nakamura, Tsuyoshi Maruo, Osamu Hamanoi, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
  • Patent number: 11424463
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell stack, an oxidizing gas supply system, a fuel gas supply system, a current control circuit configured to control an output current of the fuel cell stack, a control unit configured to control power generation of the fuel cell stack, and the output current of the current control circuit, the control unit controlling the current control circuit to adjust the output current thereby adjusting a heating value of the fuel cell stack; and a monitoring unit configured to monitor abnormal fuel gas generation, the abnormal fuel gas generation corresponding to a state where the fuel gas in excess of a predetermined allowable amount exists in the cathode. When the monitoring unit detects the abnormal fuel gas generation during execution of a warm-up operation to allow the fuel cell stack to generate heat with a predetermined target heating value, the control unit reduces the output current by reducing the target heating value.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 3, 2021
    Date of Patent: August 23, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Ryouichi Namba, Masahiro Ito, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa, Tomotaka Ishikawa
  • Patent number: 11322760
    Abstract: A fuel cell system comprises: a gas-liquid separator separating exhaust gas of a fuel cell stack into a liquid component and a gas component and storing liquid water of the liquid component; a circulation pipe; a drain pipe discharging the liquid water; and a drain valve opening and closing the drain pipe. In an end scavenging process that is executed when operation of the fuel cell system is finished, the control unit opens the drain valve when a valve opening condition for the drain valve is satisfied. The valve opening condition is set such that an amount of the liquid water stored in the gas-liquid separator at the time the drain valve is opened in the end scavenging process is larger than an amount of the liquid water stored in the gas-liquid separator at the time the drain valve is opened during normal operation of the fuel cell system.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 27, 2020
    Date of Patent: May 3, 2022
    Assignee: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Masashi Toida, Tsuyoshi Maruo, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa
  • Patent number: 11196066
    Abstract: Provided is a fuel cell system that can effectively suppress clogging of a pipe due to freezing of water in a fuel gas supply system thereof without the need for halting the operation of the fuel cells, and thus is highly reliable. When possible freezing of water is detected or presumed to be present downstream of an injector, the amount of a fuel gas to be supplied from a circulation pump that is disposed in a circulation channel is relatively increased compared to the amount of the fuel gas to be supplied from the injector.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 1, 2018
    Date of Patent: December 7, 2021
    Assignee: Toyota Jidosha Kabushiki Kaisha
    Inventors: Seiichi Tanaka, Masashi Toida, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa, Shun Matsumoto, Tsuyoshi Maruo
  • Publication number: 20210376359
    Abstract: The low efficiency power generation part of a control device is provided with an operating point setting part setting a target current and a target voltage defining an operating point of the fuel cell at the time of low efficiency power generation and a generated electric power control part making the generated electric power of the fuel cell increase and decrease at the time of low efficiency power generation by controlling the current of the fuel cell to the target current while making the flow rate of feed of oxidizing agent gas supplied to the fuel cell fluctuate so that the voltage of the fuel cell increases and decreases above and below the target voltage within a range where the charged and discharged electric powers of the rechargeable battery do not become larger than the allowable charged and discharged electric powers.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 21, 2021
    Publication date: December 2, 2021
    Inventors: Ryouichi NAMBA, Asuka TAKASAKI, Hiroyuki TSUNEKAWA
  • Publication number: 20210376345
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell; a target operating point determination unit that determines a warm-up target operating point based on a required electric power amount during warm-up and a required heat generation amount during warm-up; an operation control unit; and a failure state identification unit that identifies whether an electric power consumption device that operates by consuming generated electric power generated by the fuel cell has failed. When a failure of the electric power consumption device is identified, the target operating point determination unit determines an operating point that satisfies a required electric power amount during a failure that is set to be smaller than the required electric power amount during the warm-up and a required heat generation amount during the failure that is set to be smaller than the required heat generation amount during the warm-up as a target operating point during the failure.
    Type: Application
    Filed: March 25, 2021
    Publication date: December 2, 2021
    Applicant: TOYOTA JIDOSHA KABUSHIKI KAISHA
    Inventors: Ryouichi NAMBA, Hiroyuki TSUNEKAWA
  • Publication number: 20210376347
    Abstract: The control device is configured so that when a temperature of the fuel cell at the time of start of power generation of the fuel cell is less than a standard temperature, it makes the fuel cell generate power so that the amount of heat generation of the fuel cell accompanying the power generation loss becomes a first amount of heat generation and so that when a cumulative value of current of a time period during which the fuel cell is made to generate power so that the amount of heat generation becomes the first amount of heat generation is equal to or greater than a predetermined cumulative value, it makes the fuel cell generate power so that the amount of heat generation becomes a second amount of heat generation larger than the first amount of heat generation.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 19, 2021
    Publication date: December 2, 2021
    Inventors: Ryouichi NAMBA, Masahiro ITO, Koro FUJIO, Hiroyuki TSUNEKAWA
  • Publication number: 20210376344
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes: a fuel cell; a temperature acquisition unit that acquires a temperature at a specific position in a vehicle equipped with the fuel cell system; a purge unit that purges the fuel cell when an operation of the fuel cell is stopped; and a control unit that acquires the temperature at the specific position from the temperature acquisition unit at least once from when the fuel cell system is stopped until the fuel cell system is started again, and uses the temperature at the specific position to determine whether purging at a stop by the purge unit is necessary when the fuel cell system is stopped next.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 23, 2021
    Publication date: December 2, 2021
    Inventors: Masashi TOIDA, Yusuke NISHIDA, Hiroyuki TSUNEKAWA, Masahiro ITO
  • Publication number: 20210376354
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell a current sensor that detects a current of the fuel cell, a plurality of cell voltage sensors that detects a voltage in a unit of one or two or more cells of the fuel cell among the cells, a pump that adjusts a flow rate of the cooling medium, and a controller. The controller estimates, in a first case, a calorific value of the fuel cell using each detected cell voltage value and the detected current value, decides the flow rate of the cooling medium based on the estimated calorific value, and controls the operation of the pump such that the flow rate of the cooling medium is lower than that of a case where the estimated calorific value is the same in a normal operation of the fuel cell.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 2, 2021
    Publication date: December 2, 2021
    Inventors: Shuhei NAKAMURA, Tsuyoshi MARUO, Osamu HAMANOI, Hiroyuki TSUNEKAWA
  • Publication number: 20210376353
    Abstract: During performance of low efficiency power generation, a control device controls the flow rate of feed of the oxidizing agent gas so that the amount of heat generation of the fuel cell accompanying power generation loss becomes a first amount of heat generation when the state of a mount on which the fuel cell system is mounted is a first mode and controls the flow rate of feed of the oxidizing agent gas so that the amount of heat generation becomes a second amount of heat generation smaller than the first amount of heat generation when the state of the mount is a second mode where the generated electric power of the fuel cell fluctuates more easily compared with the first mode.
    Type: Application
    Filed: April 20, 2021
    Publication date: December 2, 2021
    Inventors: Ryouichi NAMBA, Junichi MATSUO, Hiroyuki TSUNEKAWA
  • Publication number: 20210257635
    Abstract: A fuel cell system includes a fuel cell stack, an oxidizing gas supply system, a fuel gas supply system, a current control circuit configured to control an output current of the fuel cell stack, a control unit configured to control power generation of the fuel cell stack, and the output current of the current control circuit, the control unit controlling the current control circuit to adjust the output current thereby adjusting a heating value of the fuel cell stack; and a monitoring unit configured to monitor abnormal fuel gas generation, the abnormal fuel gas generation corresponding to a state where the fuel gas in excess of a predetermined allowable amount exists in the cathode. When the monitoring unit detects the abnormal fuel gas generation during execution of a warm-up operation to allow the fuel cell stack to generate heat with a predetermined target heating value, the control unit reduces the output current by reducing the target heating value.
    Type: Application
    Filed: February 3, 2021
    Publication date: August 19, 2021
    Inventors: Ryouichi Namba, Masahiro Ito, Hiroyuki Tsunekawa, Tomotaka Ishikawa